Why Symbols and Archetypes Speak to the Soul

Human beings are storytellers. Long before we had written language, we painted animals on cave walls, carved spirals into stone, and sat around fires sharing myths of gods, goddesses, and heroes. Across cultures and through time, symbols and archetypes have been the language of the soul—bridges between the seen and the unseen, the conscious mind and the deeper currents of the psyche.

Carl Jung famously wrote, “The symbols of the Self arise in the depths of the body, and they express its materiality as much as the structure of the perceiving consciousness.” Symbols, then, are not intellectual concepts. They are living images that touch both body and spirit, evoking recognition beyond words.

The Universal Language of the Soul

Archetypes are recurring patterns and energies—such as the Mother, the Trickster, or the Hero—that live within the collective unconscious. Symbols are their vocabulary: a wolf, a river, a sword, or a circle. When we encounter them in dreams, stories, or altered states of consciousness, they stir something ancient and eternal within us. Through archetypal images, the psyche communicates what words cannot capture, guiding us toward healing, growth, and meaning.

Caroline Myss expands this by calling archetypes “the patterning forces that influence every aspect of human behavior.” They give us a lens through which to understand both our shadow and our light, the struggles we face and the potentials we hold.

Symbols as Portals

Symbols also function as portals into deeper realities. Anthropologist and author Sandra Ingerman reminds us, “Shamans use symbols to travel into nonordinary reality, to communicate with the spiritual world, and to bring back healing.” A symbol is not just an image; it is a doorway into communion with something larger than ourselves.

Graham Hancock, in exploring ancient cultures, notes how symbolic systems—whether through myth, art, or sacred geometry—carry encoded wisdom: “Symbols are the language of the lost civilizations, still whispering truths that our rational minds often overlook.”

Similarly, John Philip Newell, writing of Celtic spirituality, observes: “Beneath the surface patterns of our lives are deeper rhythms of the soul, rhythms that the symbols of myth and poetry help us remember.”

Light and Shadow in Archetypal Work

Working with archetypes is not about idolizing them but about recognizing how their energies live within us. Marion Woodman wrote extensively on this: “The symbolic life is the only life. If we lose the symbols, everything goes dead.” By engaging with archetypes—whether through dreams, active imagination, or symbolic sight—we reclaim vitality and a sense of connection.

Bobby Lake-Thorn, a Native healer, emphasizes that symbols and stories are not abstract: they are medicine. “Our stories, our ceremonies, our symbols—these are living energies, gifts from Creator. When you work with them, they work with you.”

Why the Soul Responds

The soul doesn’t speak in linear sentences—it speaks in images, patterns, and mythic resonance. To work with symbols and archetypes is to converse with the deepest parts of ourselves and the collective memory of humanity.

Paul Levy captures this beautifully in his reflections on archetypal forces: “When we become conscious of archetypes, we recognize that we are participating in a deeper mythic process. We are not simply living our lives; we are living the life of the cosmos through us.”

To see symbolically is to awaken to meaning woven into everything—a dream, a tarot card, a piece of music, a fox crossing your path at dusk. It is to remember that life itself is alive with messages, if only we learn the language.

✨ An Invitation:
Begin noticing the symbols and archetypal patterns that are appearing in your life. Keep a journal (check out my free "Field Notes" journal template) of dream images, repeating animals or numbers, or myths that call to you. Ask yourself: What is my soul trying to communicate through these images? What story am I being invited into?

As Jung reminded us, “The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are.” Symbols and archetypes are the signposts that guide us on that journey.